United Nations (UN) Secretary-General Antonio Guterres on Tuesday announced launching a humanitarian appeal for $397 million for the people of earthquake-hit Syria. 

"This will cover a period of three months," Guterres told reporters. "We are in the final stages of a similar appeal for Türkiye."

The effort brings together the entire UN system and humanitarian partners and will help secure desperately needed, life-saving relief for nearly 5 million Syrians, including shelter, healthcare, food and protection, he said. 

"The most effective way to stand with the people is by providing this emergency funding," he said.

Strong earthquakes and aftershocks hit Türkiye and neighboring Syria on February 6, with the combined death toll climbing to over 37,000 people as of Tuesday.

In the immediate aftermath of the earthquakes, the UN rapidly provided $50 million through the Central Emergency Response Fund. "But the needs are immense," Guterres said, pointing out that millions of people were struggling for survival, homeless and in freezing temperatures.

The UN chief stressed that the human suffering from this natural disaster should not be made even worse by manmade obstacles in access, funding and supplies. 

"Aid must get through from all sides, to all sides, through all routes without any restrictions," he said.

According to the UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA), 8.8 million people in Syria were affected by the devastating earthquakes. 

The damage is worse in the northwestern part of the country, with over 4.2 million people affected in Aleppo and about 3 million in Idlib, OCHA said Tuesday in a press release, adding that more than 7,400 buildings have been completely or partially destroyed. 

"Water, electricity, heating and social services are under severe pressure. The risk of waterborne diseases is high, particularly amid an ongoing cholera outbreak," the UN agency said. "Emergency healthcare is limited, and lack of fuel and heavy machinery is hampering efforts to quickly reach people most in need." 

(With input from Xinhua)